Psalm 23. A psalm about value. A psalm about the gospel.

Psalm 23. A psalm of David. David recognizes two things. The Lord is his shepherd. He is his sheep. God’s prized possession. God’s personal possession. So, he’s confident he’ll lack nothing.

David wandered to many places. Many dangerous, dry, deserted, and dark places. Yet, his gentle shepherd would lead him to green pastures and calm waters. His shepherd would restore him, refresh him, and renew him. David would feel like a new man! The shepherd would take this new man and get him back on the right path. Not for David’s sake. But for His own name’s sake. The right paths were paths of righteousness. Paths to remind sheep of their shepherd’s character. Character that would never waver. Character that would never change. Character that would never fail.

The dangers would return. Dark valleys would have to be walked. Not a matter of if, but when. David was ready for this. He wasn’t afraid of the dark. He wasn’t afraid of evil. He remembered his shepherd. He relied on his shepherd. His shepherd would use his rod to beat off wolves and other predators. The shepherd would use his staff to prod David along and keep him in line. The shepherd protected David from those who would devour him, making sure he wouldn’t wander off the right path. The rod and staff reminded David that he’s dependent. He was OK with that. He was comforted by that. 

David’s shepherd was a generous host. Enemies don’t go away. They lurk. They surround. Sheep are vulnerable. They’ll get them some day. They’re too weak. They’re too helpless. It’s just a matter of time. Not for David. With enemies everywhere, His shepherd hosts him for a feast. The finest of food and finest of wine. More than enough. The sheep is stuffed full with the shepherd’s abundance.

The shepherd’s goodness, mercy, and love will be with David all the days of his life. Day in. Day out. David knew this. David lived this. David loved his shepherd. His shepherd loved him. The good shepherd loves all his sheep because he values his sheep. Each sheep.

Jesus is our compassionate shepherd. He knows his sheep. Knows them by name. He knows us. He values us. He gave up his life for us. He was the lamb led to slaughter so that we wouldn’t be. So that we won’t be. He knows we need protection and provision. He still sees us as those in need. Those in need of a loving and caring shepherd. He cares for us. He leads us. His rod beats away the predators of sin and death. His staff lead us, leads Zach, along this race marked out for us. His staff, His Spirit, leads us to the finish line. His staff, His Spirit, leads us to a feast! He’ll be our host! We will be stuffed with goodness, love, and mercy all the days of our life. Our eternal life. Now that’s value. That’s our Shepherd. That’s gospel.  

Today’s Updates:

The past two days have been alright for Zach. They did a chest x ray on Zach today which showed that his left lung has fully re-inflated, so they removed his left chest tube! The x ray also showed that Zach still has a bad pneumonia in both lungs, and that he will need his other chest tube for a longer period because of the dead space in his right lung. We praise God for the improvement in Zach’s left lung, and we pray that God will grant continued healing.

Zach has been quite calm the last couple of days. He opens his eyes and focuses on people and things, and sometimes tracks us with his eyes. The doctors are happy with the medication regimen he’s been on so we haven’t seen many changes. We thank God for Zach’s rest and we pray earnestly that God will heal Zach’s brain in His good time.

Our nurse today told us that Zach’s surgery sites on both legs are healing very well. We thank God that Zach is recovering well from his leg amputations, and we continue to pray that God will grant Zach peace with the loss of his right hand and both feet.

Zach continues to have his trach cuff down during the day (a step closer to breathing without a tracheostomy). They still put his trach cuff back up overnight to let him rest. Zach is on the trach mask, but he only needs it to humidify his airway and he doesn’t require any supplemental oxygen. We are blown away when we think of how much progress Zach has made to be able to oxygenate on his own now.

We ask that you continue to pray for healing of Zach’s brain and body. We also ask you to join us in praising God for Zach’s progress this week, especially with the chest tube removal and his recovery from surgery. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.

“Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalm 100:3)

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26)

“We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.”(Isaiah 53:6-10)